Tengku Adnan to sort issues with Sarawak parties

SATURDAY, 27 FEBRUARY 2010 11:28

JULAU: Barisan Nasional secretary-general Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor will meet former Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP) secretary-general Sylvester Entri Muran and others today in a move to try and resolve the hiccup in the party.

Tengku Adnan, who was despatched to Kuching apparently to work behind the scenes to quickly mediate a settlement, will also be meeting Party Rakyat Sarawak (PRS) president Datuk Seri James Masing.

The problem in SPDP arose after its recent triennial general assembly when president Datuk Seri William Mawan Ikom appointed Nelson Balang, who is Ba Kelalan state assemblyman, to replace Entri as the new secretary-general.

This did not go down well with Entri and four others – senior vice-president Datuk Peter Nansian, information chief Paulus Palu Gumbang (state assemblyman for Batu Danau), Rosey Yunus (Bekenu) and Dr Tiki Lafe (MP for Mas Gading). Three supreme council members Peter Gani, George Garai and Eda Egar had also reportedly thrown their weight behind Entri.

They then decided to merge immediately on their own with PRS without going through Peter Nyarok, who is the SPDP chairman of the proposed merger committee.

SPDP supreme council member Paul Igai confirmed that Tengku Adnan was helping to resolve the hiccup in his party.

"He may most probably be attending our supreme council meeting this Sunday (tomorrow)," he said

Adnan had recently met with Mawan, deputy president Datuk Peter Nyarok, secretary-general Nelson Balang Rining and treasurer-general and Bintulu MP Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing.

A PRS leader, who refused to be identified, is delighted with the move by the group to register with PRS, saying it would only strengthen their pool of elected representatives, and reportedly open the way for the merger of Dayak-based parties. PRS currently has nine state assemblymen and six MPs.

Political observers, however, see the crisis has yet another of Sarawak Chief Minister Tan Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud's strategies to stay in power.

One observer had reportedly said: "He creates the unrest to show the federal BN leaders that without him BN in Sarawak will disintegrate."

Ku Li says federal government is acting like a ‘Godfather’

By Neville Spykerman

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 25 — Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah(picture) says the federal government is behaving like a “Godfather” in refusing to pay oil royalties to Kelantan, in remarks suggesting the Kelantan prince and veteran Umno man is bent on continuing to speak out for his home state against the Najib administration.

He also pointed out in an interview with The Malaysian Insider that oil disputes had sparked the Iranian Islamic revolution in 1979 and warned the federal government against denying the wishes of the public by depriving states of oil royalties.

“Ayatollah Khomeini was 91, when he led the uprising against the Shah over 30 years ago,” said the Gua Musang MP, who added the revolution was not only because the Iranian monarch Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was a dictator but because he was misusing the country’s oil revenue.

The 72-year-old Kelantan prince, who is better known as Ku Li, was quick to dismiss any suggestions that he wanted to lead any kind of revolution in Malaysia.

But he continues to persist in his attacks against the federal government, and this has clearly caused some tension with his Umno colleagues.

Today, Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin questioned Tengku Razaleigh’s loyalty to Umno and accused the Kelantan prince of trying to confuse the public over the oil royalty dispute.

He also defended the federal government’s refusal to pay oil royalties claimed by Kelantan, saying that it was in “accordance with law.”

In yesterday’s interview, Tengku Razaleigh said he was moving to establish a bi-partisan Federation Caucus in Parliament to examine ‘unhappy’ federal-state relations, including the dispute over oil royalties.

The federal government and the PAS-ruled Kelantan government are locked in a dispute over whether the state is entitled to five per cent royalty for oil extracted off its waters.

The Umno veteran has broken ranks with his party to weigh-in on the side of the state government by insisting Kelantan was entitled to the payments according to the Petroleum Development Act .

Tengku Razaleigh said the Federation of Malaya Agreement was signed in 1948 while Malaysia was formed in 1963, and a review was overdue.

“The Federal Government is behaving like a Godfather even though their power comes from the 13 states,” he said in likening Putrajaya’s heavy-handedness to that of the head of a criminal organization.

He added it was not only the opposition Pakatan Rakyat (PR) led states that were unhappy with the Federal Government but also mentris besar of some Barisan Nasional (BN) states.

Despite his campaign against the federal government, Tengku Razaleigh said that Umno had nothing to fear because he is, and remains, a life member of the party.

“I am not a scheming fellow unlike some,” he said, adding a caucus was only a discussion group and a conduit for new ideas which is common in modern democracies.

He said the caucus would not be a voting bloc to oppose the government.

SPDP crisis turning for the worst?

Joseph Tawie

Thursday, 11 February 2010 18:41

KUCHING – The deputy secretary general of Sarawak Progressive Democratic Party (SPDP), Paul Igai, said today that the party is aware of the move by the five elected representatives and three members of its supreme council to leave the party.

“Yes, we are aware of their move, but we still want them to come back,” said Igai who is also a political secretary to the Chief Minister.

He said: “We must, instead, reconsolidate and re-energise the party. Focus must be on the strength of the party and the Barisan Nasional in view of the coming state election.

“Parking permits must never be an option. They are still needed in the party,” said Igai.

He said the party president, William Mawan, had met the Chief Minister and the chairman of the State Barisan Nasional, Abdul Taib Mahmud, to explain the party crisis.

Political observers, however, see the crisis has worsened because of the move by the five elected representatives and three of the supreme council members to quit the party.

Decision to leave SPDP

The elected representatives are Sylvester Enteri (state assemblyman for Marudi), Peter Nansian (state assemblyman for Tasik Biru), Rosey Yunus (state assemblywoman for Bekenu), Paulus Gumbang (state assemblyman for Batu Danau) and Dr. Tiki Lafe (MP for Mas Gading).

The three supreme council members are Peter Gani, George Garai and Eda Egar.

NOTE: IN FACT ALL THE ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES ABOVE ARE PBB's Party members - planted 'MOLES' to destroy SPDP in time of crisis. William Mawan is too gullible to understand PBB Politics of 'break and rule' to perpetuate Taib rule of Sarawak. Taib's political strategy is create 'unrest' in BN component party to keep him in power for perpetuity and to show to the Federal BN leaders that without him BN in Sarawak will disintegrate.

According to highly-placed sources, the group met the Sarawak Chief Minister on Wednesday to inform him of their decision to leave SPDP. They are asking to be parked with Parti Rakyat Sarawak which is headed by James Masing.

Last Thursday, they met with the Prime Minister informing him of their decision to leave the party.

The sources said that they were told by the Prime Minister not to form another party as they might not be able to join Barisan Nasional later.

Maintaining status quo

But the Prime Minister was said to have told them to consult the Chief Minister as to which party they should be parked.

The crisis precipitated last month after Mawan dropped Enteri as secretary general and replaced him with state assemblyman for Ba’Kelalan Nelson Balang Rining,

Enteri accused Mawan of not honouring his promise of maintaining status quo after listing him as one of the “President’s men” before the party went for its election last year.

A PRS leader, who refused to be identified, has welcomed the move by the group to be parked with PRS as it would not only enlarge the party’s elected representatives, but would also open the way for the merger of Dayak-based parties.

Currently, PRS has nine state assemblymen and six MPs. — Malaysian Mirror